The Arizona sentinel., 1887-06-18
TOM AND DICK.
A Little Story of the Last of a Numerous
 Family.

A Little Story of the Last of a Numerous
 Family.
 They were the last of seven house flies that got into the sitting-room one day when the door-screen happened to stand open. The baby's mamma thought them only five, but grandmama was sure there were seven, and am inclined to agree with her; for in a matter of flies, you have always noticed there are likely to be a good many rather than few. And if any one should say there are one hundred and fifty trying to get into the kitchen while the dinner is cooking, you may be pretty sure there are one hundred and sixty-one at least. So the baby s grandmma was undoubtedly right. and Tom and Dick were not the last of five flies but of seven; and yet l have a doubt as to whether there may not have been ten of them at first or may be twelve. At any rate they had all disappeared but these two, and it was now the last of December. The morn ing was cold and Tom and Dick sat by the grate, on the rack that held the baby's elothee. They uUore worry fond of the baby in their way, and liked nothing better than travelling over her fat cheeks or tickling the end of her little pug nose. She did not like them at all, but they did not stop to worry about that. When she struck out for them, her fat fist was a good deal more likely to go into one of her own blue eyes than to hit either of her troublesome admirers. and they usually flew away without a brush. This morning she was sound asleep. Her milk bottle lay in the foot of the crib, and Dick thought he would like get at least a smell of it; so he flew around and around hunting for place to let him in. But the baby's mother had spread big net over baby, crib, bottle and all, and Dick could not find a place that would much more than let his nose through. So he finally gave up the matter, and went to look out of the window. It was showing fast and the brown leaves that were left on the trees seemed to be scared. and it was so cold. Such weather made Dick feel dismal, and he flew back to the rack before the fire to see Tom; and then it struck him all of sudden that Tom looked queer. His head seemed loose and about to fall off; his wings looked faded and dropping. ana his eyes were dull.
 Why, Toni, old fellow, what's the matter?" said Dick. But Tom did not answer.
 "I say. Tomr' called Dick again
 The baby could not have heard him if she had been broad awake, nor the baby's mother if she had been there; but Dick knew what he said. and Tom knew this time; for pretty soon he an- swered slowly:
 q am very sleepy" and his voice was faint, and sounded to Dick as if it were long way off-as if it had got away from Tom and gone up the chim- ney or outside the door, or into the bottom of the baby's bottle-he could not keep the baby's bottle out of his head.
 "Wen, should think so,' said Dick, briskly, as he shook out his wings. "Why don't you hold up your head, and stir around bit, and be a re- spectable fy?"
 '.It is very late and cold" said Tom, slowly, as before, and again his voice sounded as if it were away off by it. self somewhere. Dick laughed, but you couldn't have heard him if he had been tickling your nose at that very minute.
 "Cold enough, that's fact. But lateP Why, it's early in the morning"
 q know a good place to go to sleep in." said Tom, nodding his head still lower
 "Well. you're-you're just prepOs- terous," said Dick. You needn't bother yourself about going to sleep. old fellow. You're fast asleep now. You'd better go and hunt up your voice and see if you can't make some use of it. Bye, bye," and Dick spread his wings and merrily flew away.
 A vase with tea rose in it stood on a table in the sitting-room and he stopped moment to examine that, but the rose didn't taste so good as it smelled and he went on to the dining room. He liked good things and sweet things, and didn't care much about any thing else; and the next day the cook found Dick dead in a jelly-pot, which IS exactly what you might have expected.
 But Tom made his way to photo graph of Raphaers Fourth Hour of the Night" which hung on the sitting room wall, and tucked himself into a big knot in the cord behind the picture and went fast asleep. He slept much more soundly than the baby did, for